It was Tuesday, September 13, 2005. I had been diligently studying Christian Science for about eight months feeling an extreme need to get closer to God. The reformation was going great! During that time, I had been healed of many addictions (alcohol, cigarettes, marijuana), and life was on the rise. Yet on this particular day it seemed like my past was catching up with me. I also felt as if I was getting sick.

I was due in court on Friday for a D.U.I. (driving under the influence) arrest which had occurred before my “resurrection” into Christian Science. The hearing I was to attend was for an appeal to give new evidence regarding the arrest which had not been carried out properly.

Looking at this now in a new light, my view of the situation had drastically changed. Fear seemed to encompass me. Not fear of the outcome, but fear that the appeal was not in accord with God. I knew I was guilty of the crime, but the arrest that had taken place was not lawful. Was there congestion of thought? You bet!

I did some prayerful work on the subject and realized that in God’s universe all things work according to His law.

My lawyer called and explained that the judge at our first hearing was to be out for the month and that we may need to reschedule. This had happened before with the same judge and it seemed like now we were just delaying the matter.

As I prayed more along the lines of knowing God’s law was in control, I felt that there was no need to wait for the right judge because that right judge was God! This brought relief mentally and physically, but not totally. I was still not sure what I should do.

Confident in God, yet confused in thought, I called my lawyer back and left a message that we were going to court on Friday regardless of the judge and I was going to state my guilt and suffer the consequences, whatever they were. He then left me a message that this was ridiculous, since we were going to court for my wrongful arrest and he wanted it to come out right for me. The thought then came not to call him again back until I had time to pray.

Through my prayer I realized that everything in God’s universe is harmonious. All I needed to do was let His harmony reign and stop trying to solve the problem myself. This line of thought brought me peace.

When I called my lawyer the next day he sounded very excited. He said that the judge that we needed to see was coming back from vacation two weeks early and would be here in time for our case. That was good news! I conceded to go along with the appeal, and felt we were going to settle this matter truthfully. My lawyer accepted that and we got off the phone.

Feeling I needed help on the subject, I called my mother who is an avid Christian Scientist and has always helped me through prayer. Relaying the situation of the court case to her, she explained that “reformation cancels the crime.” (Science and Health 404:15) She said she would do some prayerful work for me.

“Reformation cancels the crime”? This sounded great! But what did it mean? Was it because I was now living to my “highest sense of right” that I was forgiven? A very calm and loving “YES” came to me as the answer. Did that mean that the judge would see it that way? I did not know.

While praying about this during the week, I listened many times to a C.D. of an article by Adam H. Dickey called, God’s Law of Adjustment. In this article he states many wonderful truths, such as, “…when we succeed in getting ourselves out of the way, we can than be satisfied with the words of the prophet, ‘the battle is not yours but God’s… set yourselves, stand ye still and, see the salvation of the Lord.’” Also, that, “…all we ever need to do, is that which is pleasing in the sight of God.” I had heard this before, but now it started to make sense.

Each time it came to me that I needed to do something through my own will, I proceeded to “stand still” and let God take control. Then I would ask myself, “Am I doing that which is pleasing in the sight of God?” I was!

The morning of court arrived. Instead of feeling as I had in the past about these so-called “days of judgment” (feeling fear as well as guilt), I was calm. I stated out loud Mrs. Eddy’s Daily Prayer (page 41, “Manual of The Mother Church”), “‘Thy kingdom come;’ let the reign of divine Truth, Life, and Love be established in me, and rule out of me all sin; and may Thy Word enrich the affections of all mankind and govern them!” Thinking about that prayer gave me complete peace from all sickness and fear at once. It was awesome! Cheerfully, I thanked the Lord and proceeded to get ready for court.

As I was leaving my house, my lawyer called and said, “I told my wife that I might get held in contempt of court because I’m really going to give it to this guy (the arresting officer), when I get him on the stand!” I replied calmly that as long as the truth was told that everything would work itself out.

I arrived to the courthouse early and sat outside the room in which the proceedings were to take place. I saw the arresting officer out front with about four other sheriffs. Fear tried to sneak back in and say to me, “These are the officers that were at the arrest, and no matter when the truth is they will persuade the judge in their favor.” I answered this thought with a smile towards them and sat down and to read my Christian Science Bible lesson.

Eventually, my lawyer showed up, and he, the arresting officer, and the D.A. entered the courtroom leaving me outside to read.

Soon after, my lawyer came out and asked me to walk to his car and get a document. As we walked, he said in a smug voice, “Now this guy (the arresting officer) is acting like he is my friend! He even congratulated me on my new baby!” I smiled and assured him that no matter what had happened in the past, I was sure he was a nice guy. He looked at me almost in wonder. This is not something I would have said at the beginning of all this a few years ago. Confused, he offered me a cigarette, which I declined. I knew he was confused about my change of attitude towards this guy.

Patiently, I explained the healing of all my seeming addictions, (alcohol, cigarettes and pot), and of my newfound love for God through my study of Christian Science. His demeanor immediately changed. He was no more anxious or excited. He became calm and kind. We went back into the courtroom and sat down.

Eventually, the judge called our case and asked my lawyer and the D.A. to join him in his quarters to discus the matter. This left the arresting officer and me just a few seats apart. I sat there smiling completely confident that whatever happened next would be in accord with the law of God regardless of the outcome. There was only good in God’s court.

The next thing I knew the officer that arrested me had slid over a few seats and was right next to me. He told me that I could tell him to buzz off if I wanted to, but that there were a few things he was curious about regarding the DMV hearing (in which he and my lawyer had not been too friendly to say the least). I explained to him that the appeal had gone through and that I had received my license back with nothing showing on my record. He smiled and said that he was happy to hear it. He also said that my lawyer and I seemed like nice people and that he in no way wanted bad things to come to us. He said that if I would have been more truthful the night of the arrest that we would not be here now. To this I responded that it was my recklessness, not his arrest, which had brought us here. I also had time to briefly share with him my reformation. He thought that was great and said that the worst thing about his job is arresting someone twice for the same crime. I assured him that this would not be the case in this circumstance. We proceeded to have a nice conversation and shortly the judge, along with my lawyer and the D.A. came back out.

I was asked to go and stand next to my lawyer which I promptly did. He asked for a dismissal based on the evidence the judge had seen in his quarters. The D.A. stated she had nothing more to add and with that the dismissal was granted.

We all walked out together, my lawyer actually getting advice from the arresting officer concerning his newborn as if they were old pals! He and I left the D.A. and the officer at the elevator with smiles thanking them for their time. Not only had reformation canceled the crime, but the peace between all was remarkable, and the sickness I felt had completely disappeared.

Seeing how God’s law controls all, not just part of any given situation, but governing all parts, put me in awe of the power of prayer. There was no condemning the arresting officer on the stand, there was no admission to mortal crimes, there was no more sickness, and there was only God, Principle, controlling all.

I think the best way to express the gratitude I feel for Christian Science, our Master, Christ Jesus, our Leader, Mary Baker Eddy, and all who have helped me along the was is …THANK YOU GOD!

A grateful student of Christian Science,
Summer Wright

This entry was posted on Sunday, April 25th, 2010 at 5:05 pm and is filed under Articles, Healings. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.